Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, has announced that Hungary and Turkey are about to sign an agreement on “priority strategic cooperation”.
Following talks with his Turkish counterpart, Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Minister Szijjártó told a joint press conference that Turkey's role in tackling global challenges had grown in recent years. Regarding the war in Ukraine, he said that Hungary, as a neighbor of Ukraine, “feels all negative effects of the war gravely and palpably”, so it has a vested interest in peace. “Unfortunately, we must note that very few in the Transatlantic world … talk about or act for peace.” Speaking of peace “requires courage, as it brings on the relentless criticism from the liberal mainstream, which paints those involved as Putin’s allies, Russophiles and Kremlin propagandists,” he said. Referring to an agreement on restarting grain deliveries from Ukraine, Minister Szijjártó said Turkey's successful mediation had shown that negotiation was the only way to end the war. He said Attila Tilki, a lawmaker of ruling Fidesz and a member of a council within the Organisation of Turkic States has recommended Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for the Nobel Peace Prize. Erdoğan, he added, was the only successful negotiator in respect of the war so far.